Late September (DVD)

Late September takes place over a 24 hour period and follows the course and aftermath of a birthday celebration arranged by a middle-aged woman for her husband to whom she has been married for nearly 40 years. As the day and night progress, old rifts, new relationships and secrets emerge amongst friends, and the underlying tensions in the marriage can no longer be contained. This age group, the post war generation now approaching old age, has not received much attention in film and here their lives, their hopes and fears for the future are portrayed with a total lack of sentimentality but also with great warmth, humour and empathy. The problems these friends face are specific but universal and recognisable to us all. The question of whether it is better to live alone or to live with someone you feel lonely with is never answered but is reflected in different ways within the reality of the individual characters, as it is played out with intensity and honesty in a beautiful Kent house and garden in the shadows of late September.